When my children were younger, I would spend countless hours in the kitchen cooking breakfast, lunch and dinner on a daily basis. Now that they’re older and more self-sufficient (and should be cooking for me), I still cook often but not nearly as much. Every now and then when someone asks me, “What’s for dinner?” I get excited when I can eagerly answer, “My specialty!” “Your specialty?” they inquire as they light up in high anticipation. “What’s your specialty?” If my children are around, before I can say anything, they quickly make it very clear, “She’s talking about leftovers!”

That’s right… Leftovers are my specialty! When I cook, I like to make enough to last another day or two so I don’t have to cook everyday. Unfortunately, the way my children eat, what I thought would last two days often times is totally devoured in one.

My specialty was brought to mind today as I was meditating on the story in the Bible about the feeding of the five thousand. When Jesus multiplied the little boys lunch of five loaves of bread and two fish, not only was there enough to feed the thousands of people there, but there were twelve baskets full of leftovers for the boy to take home.

Now, if you think about it, they didn’t have refrigerators back then like we do now. It wasn’t like the little boy could take all that fish and bread home, place it in individual Ziploc bags and put it in the freezer so they didn’t have to worry about what they were going to eat for the next several months. No, either it was consumed within a certain period of time, or it all went to waste. So, that means there was more than enough for the little boy’s family to eat all they wanted and still had plenty more for them to give away. In exchange for the little that he sowed, the little boy reaped so much more.

The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 9:10, “Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness.” The Contemporary English Version (CEV) says the last part of that verse this way, “[God] will increase what you have, so that you can give even more to those in need.” Let me say that again, “[God] will increase what you have, so that you can give even more to those in need.” When you’re willing to give out of the little that you have, God will give you more to give. That’s what it means when it says God gives seed to the sower. When God can trust you to do what He wants you to do with the little resources that you have, then He is excited to multiply your resources so you have even more seed to sow into the lives of His people. But why would He give more seed to someone He knows is going to eat it instead of sowing it?

In today’s society, we portray leftovers as some two-day old, unwanted, repeat of the day before. But in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John’s account of this story, leftovers represented supernatural, miraculous, abundant, provision. If you started seeing leftovers the way Jesus sees them, then maybe leftovers would become your specialty as well!

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